What Are Doctors Saying About Antibiotic Resistance?

5 questions to consider next time your physician gives you a prescription

Quiz August 6, 2020 Read time: Less than a minute

Projects: Antibiotic Resistance

The Pew Charitable Trusts, the American Medical Association, and stewardship experts conducted a national survey of primary care physicians to better understand their attitudes toward antibiotic resistance, antibiotic prescribing, and ways to improve the use of antibiotics. Can you guess how doctors responded? Answer the questions below to find out.

Fill in the blanks: Some ______ % of physicians agreed that inappropriate prescribing is a problem in doctor’s offices and other outpatient health care settings, while ______ % agreed that inappropriate prescribing was a problem in their own practices.
1. 47 and 51
2. 91 and 37
3. 78 and 52
4. 95 and 63
5. Ninety-one percent of physicians agreed that inappropriate prescribing is a problem in doctor’s offices and other outpatient health care settings. However, when asked about inappropriate prescribing in their own practices, only 37% agreed that it was a problem. This disconnect presents a barrier to the implementation of antibiotic stewardship efforts.
When asked to rank the following public health issues—nicotine use, diabetes, obesity, opioid misuse, and antibiotic resistance—in terms of impact to their patients and daily practice, where did most internal and family medicine doctors rank antibiotic resistance?
1. No. 1, the most important
2. No. 2
3. No. 3
4. No. 4
5. No. 5, the least important
6. Forty-three percent of internal and family medicine physicians ranked antibiotic resistance fifth among the five public health issues. Only 26% of internal and family medicine physicians ranked antibiotic resistance in their top three. The relatively low ranking of antibiotic resistance may affect a physician’s decision to prioritize antibiotic stewardship efforts in their practice.
What percentage of physicians say they have seen a rise in antibiotic-resistant infections among their patients?
1. 20%
2. 45%
3. 65%
4. 80%
5. Sixty-five percent of physicians have seen an increase in resistant infections among their patients in the past five years. This reflects the rising number of community-associated infections caused by resistant pathogens in the United States.
What percentage of physicians believe antibiotic stewardship programs aimed at improving antibiotic prescribing practices are appropriate for office-based medical practices?
1. 91%
2. 80%
3. 68%
4. 42%
5. Ninety-one percent of physicians believe stewardship programs are appropriate for office-based practices, demonstrating support for outpatient antibiotic stewardship programs.
Which organization do pediatricians trust most to provide them with accurate feedback on their antibiotic prescribing practices?
1. State department of health
2. Medicaid
3. Commercial health insurers
4. Their practice or health system
5. Eighty-eight percent of pediatricians ranked their own practice or health system first or second as the organization they trust most to provide them with accurate feedback. This was followed by the state department of health, commercial health insurers, and Medicaid.

Please answer all questions to get your score.

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Thank you for taking our quiz on doctors’ attitudes about antibiotic resistance! To learn more about what doctors are saying about superbugs, check out our chartbook detailing the full survey results.